Eva was born in Kautz, Russia, to parents of German descent. Her family immigrated to the US in 1906. They first lived in Lincoln, Nebraska, and then moved to Billings, Montana, in 1908.

Eva married Bill Frank on March 4, 1917, in Billings, Montana. On the day they were married, it was 28 degrees below zero, and they had to walk three blocks to the church. They made their home in Walla Walla, Washington. They were the parents of seven children.